While literature on entrepreneurship education and training by pre-incubators has proliferated, scholars have started to critically try to explain the contradictory findings of impact studies. In this regard, the career preferences of early-career academics who enrol in the programs are an issue that deserves more attention because of the high level of commitment required in new venture creation. Pre-incubators can be a testing ground in this regard, allowing incubates to explore and test whether their career preferences are in line with this task while being actively involved in the entrepreneurial learning process. The research question we aim to answer is: Do career preferences drive entrepreneurial learning in pre-incubators? If yes, how? The data is collected in a Business Plan Competition offered by a pre-incubator program in Italy, through semi-structured interviews, field observations, web materials, and surveys. The result of this study provides several insights that contribute to the flow of literature on career development in academic entrepreneurship along with policy and practice recommendations.
